Legal costs result in landfill fee hike

Result: Expect higher prices for garbage service in area

July 3, 2013

Undisclosed legal problems and their resulting expenses are causing tipping fees to go up 43 percent at the Tama County Landfill. The hike will force both local service providers Sanitary Refuse and K & M Sanitation to raise their prices for pick up.

Bob Hill and Larry Mann, the respective owners of the services, confirmed to The Chronicle last week they will have to increase what they charge after July 1 when the tipping fee escalates from $35 to $50 a ton for residential waste. Mann also noted construction and demolition loads will now be billed at $60 per ton. It also had been billed at $35 per ton previously.

The Tama County Solid Waste Disposal Commission which oversees landfill operations voted 8-0 on June 13 to approve the hike "due to unforeseen legal expenses for the commission, Commission members and Landfill employees" according to meeting minutes. It remains unknown what the legal problems are.

Article Photos

A barbecue grill is tossed from a trailer onto the metal scrap pile at the Tama County Landfill located three miles north of Toledo on Thursday afternoon, June 27. While there is no charge for disposal of scrap metal, the cost for disposal of other waste materials is going from $35 to $50 per ton and $35 to $60 for construction materials effective July 1.Chronicle/John Speer

On May 30, the commission had voted to hire West Des Moines lawyers John Roehrick and Carlton Salmons "to provide legal services "over threatened litigation." Roehrick is being paid $225 hourly and Salmons pay is $200 hourly under the agreement.

Following the hiring, neither Roehrick nor Salmons responded to a Chronicle telephone request for comment. A fax request addressed to Roehrick sent on June 27 also was not answered.

There was also no response to an email request for information sent on June 26 to Tama County Attorney Brent Heeren. After the hiring, Tama County 1st District Supervisor Larry Vest declined to comment as well.